THEORIES OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS Political Science 4300 Fall 2014 Professor Randall Schweller TuTh 2:20PM - 3:40PM Office: 2106 Derby Hall Hitchcock Hall 0031 e-mail:
[email protected] Course Description The course introduces undergraduates to the major theoretical issues and paradigms in the field of international relations. The course is divided into three parts. In part one, three theoretical perspectives are covered: realism, liberalism, and constructivism. In parts two and three, these three perspectives are used as theoretical lenses to examine the current age of US primacy, how others are reacting to it, and what comes next. Course Requirements: Midterm: essay exam (50% of final grade); Final: essay exam (50% of final grade). Required Texts 1. Richard K. Betts, Conflict After the Cold War: Arguments on Causes of War and Peace 3rd or 4th edition (Longman, 2005). 2. G. John Ikenberry, ed., America Unrivaled: The Future of the Balance of Power (Cornell University Press, 2002). 3. Randall Schweller, Maxwell’s Demon and the Golden Apple: Global Discord in the New Millennium (Baltimore, Md.: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2014). Part 1: Theories of International Relations 1. ANARCHY Thomas Hobbes, “The State of Nature and the State of War,” in Betts. 2. THE SECURITY DILEMMA AND THE OFFENSE-DEFENSE BALANCE Robert Jervis, "Cooperation Under the Security Dilemma," in Betts. Jack Levy, "The Offensive/Defensive Balance of Military Technology," in Betts. 3. REALISM: CAUSES OF WAR Thucydides, "The Melian Dialogue," in Betts. Edward Hallett Carr, "Realism and Idealism," in Betts. Kenneth N. Waltz, “The Origins of War in Neorealist Theory,” in Betts.